Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/168405
P26 IN THE WIND ED KRETZ, JR. PASSES E d Kretz, Jr., former winner of the Peoria TT and Catalina Grand Prix and son of the legendary Daytona 200 winner Ed Kretz Sr., died Sunday morning, September 8 after suffering an unusual crash while out for a Sunday morning motorcycle ride with friends near his home in Sedalia, Colorado. The family was told that Kretz suddenly veered off the road, leading some to think that he may have suffered a heart attack or other sudden health issue that led to the crash. He was 81 years old. Known by his friends as Eddie, Kretz, Jr. was involved in motorcycling all of his life while growing up helping around the family's motorcycle shop in Monterey Park, California. He started racing when he was 16 in 1948. It might have been tough for Eddie coming through the racing ranks with the Kretz name. His father was the most popular motorcycle racer of the 1930s and '40s and everyone wanted to beat Kretz' kid. However, Kretz Jr. said he never felt the pressure of following in the footsteps of his father. "My dad never pushed me into racing," Kretz, Jr. said. "It was always something I wanted to do. My dad coached me, but I don't think I had it any easier or harder than anyone else out there. We were all trying to do the best we could. I never felt that my fellow riders looked at me any different just because my name happened to be Kretz." Kretz Jr. had a strong amateur racing career, including a win in the amateur portion of the 1950 Laconia (New Hampshire) Classic while also setting a new track record. Later that year, Joe Leonard nipped Kretz in a photo finish in the amateur race at the Springfield (Illinois) Mile. During his amateur racing career, Kretz wore the number 38 to honor his father, who wore that number during his racing career. By 1951, Kretz was a rookie expert and became National number 33 and he scored his first podium result that year, finishing third in the Peoria TT National. It was a preview of things to come for the young Southern California rider. Though Kretz missed a few seasons of racing while serving in the Armed Forces in Europe, he returned to full-time racing in 1955, scoring victory in the Peoria TT in September of that year riding a Triumph and beating eventual AMA Grand National Champion Brad Andres. Kretz had his best years as a Pro in 1956 and '57. In 1956, he scored a pair of top-five National finishes (both at Peoria) and finished tied for sixth in the final AMA Grand National Championship standings. He was again a top-10 rider in 1957 and scored his fourth career podium finish at Peoria. In 1956, Kretz also took victory in the 200cc class at the popular Catalina Grand Prix riding a Triumph Cub. He was also crowned Northwest Motorcycle TT Champion by virtue of his victory in Great Falls, Montana. In addition, Kretz earned the Pacific Coast TT Championship three times during the 1950s. Kretz was also a leading off-road rider and once scored a top-10 finish in the famous Big Bear Endurance Run. He also won numerous early club road-racing events on the West Coast and was one of the first in America to race the Honda 250cc four-cylinder GP machine in the early 1960s. By the early 1960s, Kretz and his wife, Elaine, had a daughter and he began to wind down his racing career. When his father retired, Kretz took over running the family's successful motorcycle dealership. He sold the dealership in 1985 and later he and his wife moved to Colorado to be close to his daughter and grandchildren. Kretz, Jr. was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2002. His family is currently making funeral arrangements. Larry Lawrence